In Pictures: How much do CIOs really make?

Inside CIO paychecks
CIO salaries in the U.S. average between $157,000 and $262,500, according to Robert Half Technology. But salary is just the beginning. Cash bonuses and equity awards can propel pay packages into the millions. To find out how much CIOs at giant global companies really earn, we scoured the proxy statements of the 500 largest U.S. companies (according to Fortune's ranking) and found 25 that disclosed CIO pay. Here are the details on their pay packages, organized from lowest to highest paid. If available, compensation for these individuals in prior years is included.

Brian Murphy, SVP and CIO, Dean Foods
CIO of Dean Foods since September 2013, Brian Murphy received the smallest cash bonus among the CIO pay packages we analyzed. He’s one of only three CIOs on the list with a pay package valued under $1 million.
Salary: $300,000
Bonus: $30,000
Stock awards: $442,639
Perks and other compensation: $15,607
TOTAL: $788,246

Michael Guggemos, CIO, Insight Enterprises
Michael Guggemos, who joined Insight in 2010, previously served as corporate vice president of IT for Motorola. His 2014 pay package, valued at $872,096, is up 10% compared to $793,564 in 2013.
Salary: $355,374
Bonus: $132,252
Stock awards: $375,007
Perks and other compensation: $9,463
TOTAL: $872,096

Laurie Douglas, SVP and CIO, Publix Super Markets
Laurie Douglas didn’t receive any new equity awards in 2014, but the value of her compensation increased 8% to $887,943, up from $818,914 in 2013. Douglas has been SVP and CIO at Publix since 2006.
Salary: $716,125
Bonus: $109,921
Perks and other compensation: $61,897
TOTAL: $887,943

Jeff Balagna, EVP and CIO, Sears Holdings
Jeff Balagna’s pay cut is the biggest among the pay packages we analyzed: His $1.2 million compensation is down 68% from 2013, when he earned $3.6 million. Balagna didn’t receive any new equity awards in 2014.
Salary: $750,000
Bonus: $311,459
Perks and other compensation: $90,065
TOTAL: $1,151,524

Robert Mills, SVP and CIO, Tractor Supply Co.
Robert Mills joined Tractor Supply in March of last year. Before joining the retailer, he held CIO roles at Ulta Beauty and Sears.
Salary: $305,962
Bonus: $221,612
Stock awards: $150,002
Option awards: $350,313
Perks and other compensation: $179,451
TOTAL: $1,207,340

Elizabeth Hackenson, SVP and CIO, AES Corp.
AES's SVP of technology and services and CIO, Elizabeth Hackenson received a $1.3 million pay package from last year. Her total compensation is down 13% compared to $1.5 million a year earlier. Before joining AES in 2008, Hackenson led technology operations for Alcatel-Lucent.
Salary: $420,000
Bonus: $293,000
Stock awards: $417,227
Option awards: $146,338
Perks and other compensation: $25,246
TOTAL: $1,301,811

Randy Burdick, EVP and CIO, Supervalu
Randy Burdick’s $1.5 million compensation package is down 33% compared to 2013, when he earned $2.2 million. Burdick is responsible for Supervalu’s IT infrastructure and personnel, as well as the company’s shared service/contact center organization. Before joining the company in March 2013, Burdick held CIO roles at OfficeMax and AMD.
Salary: $550,385
Bonus: $392,691
Stock awards: $185,003
Option awards: $374,954
Perks and other compensation: $7,493
TOTAL: $1,510,526

Jonathan Stevens, SVP and CIO, CDW
As SVP of operations and CIO, Jonathan Stevens is responsible for IT and operations at CDW, as well as for the company’s distribution centers, transportation, facilities, customer relations, and business technology center. He joined CDW in 2001 as VP of IT and was named CIO in 2002.
Salary: $297,904
Bonus: $796,967
Stock awards: $200,004
Option awards: $177,854
Change in pension value and nonqualified deferred compensation earnings: $5,733
Perks and other compensation: $128,158
TOTAL: $1,605,720

Chad Lindbloom, CIO, C.H. Robinson
Chad Lindbloom earned a 9% raise last year. He received $1.6 million in 2014, compared to $1.5 million in 2013. But the newly named CIO for C.H. Robinson wasn’t in that role last year -- he was CFO of the logistics services provider before being named CIO in December.
“I’m honored to have served the company as CFO for 15 years, and am excited for my new role,” Lindbloom said in a statement announcing the switch to CIO. “I have always had a passion for our technology and this position enables me to support our ongoing success by leading our very talented technology team and our strategy for Navisphere, our global technology platform.”
Salary: $270,000
Bonus: $505,642
Stock awards: $426,629
Option awards: $413,382
Perks and other compensation: $15,600
TOTAL: $1,631,253

Dale Asplund, SVP and CIO, United Rentals
A 46% raise upped Dale Asplund’s total compensation to $2.1 million, compared to $1.5 million in 2013. Asplund has been with United Rentals since 1998; he was promoted to SVP of business services in 2011 and named CIO in 2012.
Salary: $479,343
Bonus: $667,205
Stock awards: $963,885
Perks and other compensation: $3,000
TOTAL: $2,113,433

David Thompson, EVP and CIO, Western Union Company
David Thompson earned a $2.4 million pay package last year in his role as CIO and EVP, global operations and technology, at Western Union. His total pay is up 6% compared to 2013, when he received $2.2 million. Thompson joined Western Union in April 2012 as CIO and took on responsibility for IT. Seven months later, he added global operations to his responsibilities. Before joining Western Union, he held CIO roles at Symantec, Oracle and PeopleSoft.
Salary: $500,000
Bonus: $468,000
Stock awards: $1,118,000
Option awards: $240,000
Perks and other compensation: $50,400
TOTAL: $2,376,400

Anil Cheriyan, EVP and CIO, SunTrust Banks
Anil Cheriyan received a $2.4 million pay package last year. His pay is up 11% compared to a year earlier, when he earned $2.2 million. Cheriyan joined SunTrust in 2012 as CIO.
Salary: $500,000
Bonus: $640,500
Stock awards: $1,226,814
Perks and other compensation: $55,450
TOTAL: $2,422,764

Lisa Bachmann, EVP and COO, Big Lots
Lisa Bachmann’s total pay, valued at $3 million, increased 2% compared to a year earlier. The former Big Lots CIO was promoted to EVP and chief operating officer in 2012. As COO, Bachmann added responsibility for store operations to her workload, which includes overseeing IT, merchandise planning and allocation, and distribution and transportation services.
Salary: $646,154
Bonus: $429,065
Stock awards: $1,892,202
Perks and other compensation: $58,125
TOTAL: $3,025,546

Ram Chandrashekar, EVP of operational excellence and IT, ManpowerGroup
ManpowerGroup’s Ram Chandrashekar balances IT oversight with executive and operational responsibility. He joined ManpowerGroup in 2008 as COO for the Asia Pacific region, and in February 2014, he was promoted to EVP of operational excellence and IT and president of Asia Pacific Middle East region.
Salary: $568,035
Bonus: $621,089
Stock awards: $1,620,046
Option awards: $280,023
Perks and other compensation: $97,532
TOTAL: $3,186,725

Matt Carey, EVP and CIO, The Home Depot
Matt Carey’s $3.6 million pay package nearly identical to his 2013 compensation. Carey, who joined The Home Depot in 2008, oversees all aspects of the company’s IT infrastructure. He’s also responsible for IT strategy across the retailer’s stores, online presence, and supply chain.
Salary: $690,846
Bonus: $705,703
Stock awards: $1,477,490
Option awards: $716,661
Perks and other compensation: $20,741
TOTAL: $3,611,441

Meg McCarthy, EVP, operations and technology, Aetna
Meg McCarthy netted a $4.3 million pay package from Aetna last year, an increase of 3% compared to her 2013 pay. In her role as executive vice president of operations and technology, McCarthy (who previously served as Aetna’s CIO) oversees a wide range of activities at the healthcare provider, including clinical innovation, technology and service operations. Responsibility for process improvement, procurement and real estate services also falls under her domain.
Salary: $627,960
Bonus: $737,880
Stock awards: $840,023
Option awards: $1,934,513
Change in pension value and nonqualified deferred compensation earnings: $22,478
Perks and other compensation: $101,711
TOTAL: $4,264,565

Julie Bushman, SVP, business transformation and IT, 3M
A longtime 3M employee, Julie Bushman joined the company in 1983 as a materials control analyst and advanced through various divisions and IT roles before becoming CIO in 2003. She continued to rise -- from division vice president in 2006 to executive vice president in 2011 to SVP of business transformation and IT in 2013.
Salary: $599,029
Bonus: $653,176
Stock awards: $2,833,107
Option awards: $796,918
Change in pension value and nonqualified deferred compensation earnings: $1,034,230
Perks and other compensation: $68,644
TOTAL: $5,985,104

Adriana Karaboutis, EVP of technology and business solutions, Biogen
Newly appointed Adriana Karaboutis has been Biogen’s EVP of technology and business solutions since September 2014. Prior to joining Biogen, she was CIO for Dell. Karaboutis received the most equity-based compensation -- stock awards valued at nearly $5.3 million – among the 25 pay packages examined.
Salary: $133,846
Bonus: $2,188,165
Stock awards: $5,265,820
Perks and other compensation: $159,026
TOTAL: $7,746,857

About the numbers
Each of these CIOs is among the top earners at his or her company. But that doesn't mean they are the highest paid CIOs. Because of the rules of financial reporting, most companies don’t disclose how much their CIO is paid. A public company is only obligated to report the compensation of its principal executive officer (CEO), principal financial officer (CFO), and three most highly compensated officers. If a CIO or senior IT leader ranks among a company's three most highly paid executives, his or her compensation is reported in the organization's proxy statement. A CIO might have earned a multimillion-dollar pay package, but if more than three executives at the company topped that amount, that IT leader's pay is not disclosed. In our search of the 500 largest U.S. companies’ proxy statements, we found 25 that disclosed CIO pay.
If available, compensation for these individuals in prior years is included. Prior-year compensation data may be unavailable if they were not in their current roles or did not qualify as among the most highly compensated officers at the time.

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